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While we might still use the phrase “balancing your checkbook,” you can take it more generally to mean tracking all of your account activity and making sure your records match your bank’s - whether you use a checkbook register or other tools. Along with allowing you to easily record lots of different types of transactions, these digital tools also can help you budget and do the math for you - things a checkbook register can’t do. The idea is to make sure everything is accurate, that your balance is correct, and that your records and the bank’s are in sync.īut most people use checks very little these days, if at all - so tools like Microsoft Excel spreadsheets or Google Sheets, or spending trackers like YNAB or Mint, might make a lot more sense than using your check register to balance your checkbook and keep track of your account. To “balance a checkbook” - in its literal and maybe old-fashioned sense - means going through your bank statement and checking each transaction against what you’ve recorded in your check register. What does it mean to balance a checkbook? Next steps: Tips for remembering to balance your checkbook.If I use online banking, do I still need to balance my checkbook?.What does it mean to balance a checkbook?.
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Credit Karma Money™ Spend - 100% free to open Thankfully, we have more modern methods to accomplish this today. Since the trend has moved away from checks, the idea of using your checkbook register to keep track of your account might seem pointless.īut the original reason for balancing checkbooks still stands: You need to know what your actual, up-to-the-moment balance is, as opposed to what the bank shows as your account balance at any given time. Now there’s a whole world of payment options: ACH transfers, ATM withdrawals, PayPal, mobile wallets, and credit and debit cards.
How to balance a checkbook how to#
Back in our parents’ and grandparents’ days, checks were the primary non-cash way to spend money - so knowing how to balance a checkbook was key. Of course, the offers on our platform don't represent all financial products out there, but our goal is to show you as many great options as we can. That's why we provide features like your Approval Odds and savings estimates. But since we generally make money when you find an offer you like and get, we try to show you offers we think are a good match for you. The money we make helps us give you access to free credit scores and reports and helps us create our other great tools and educational materials.Ĭompensation may factor into how and where products appear on our platform (and in what order). The offers for financial products you see on our platform come from companies who pay us. We think it's important for you to understand how we make money.